Government

City, county, schools to have joint meeting

Elected officials for the city of Lawrence, Douglas County and Lawrence public schools will have a joint meeting from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday at school district offices, 110 McDonald Drive.

Officials are slated to discuss several issues, including after-school programs, bond issues and prospects for the former Farmland Industries Inc. site and other industrial growth areas.

Education

High schools to start late on Wednesday

Students at Free State and Lawrence high schools get a chance to sleep in Wednesday.

Classes will begin at 9:40 a.m. instead of 8 a.m. as teachers have the first of seven staff development sessions. This is the third year for the program.

School buses will run on their regular schedule and the school library and cafeteria will be open, said district spokeswoman Julie Boyle.

Dismissal time will be on the usual schedule.

Other days with a late start this year are: Oct. 6, Nov. 10, Jan. 12, Feb. 9, April 13 and May 4.

Police

Alternative High School reports loiterer

Police on Monday interviewed but didn’t arrest a man who’s been seen loitering in the parking lot of Lawrence Alternative High School and talking to female students.

Last week a police report said the man had been seen offering money and drugs to female students at the school, 2600 W. 25th St. School officials called police again Monday morning after the man’s vehicle was spotted at the school.

Officers came to the scene, talked to the man and identified him, but as of Monday evening they hadn’t developed enough information about the incidents to warrant an arrest, said Sgt. Dan Ward, a police spokesman.

He said the investigation would continue.

Internet

Bank account hacked to access porn site

A Lawrence woman got an unwelcome surprise on her bank statements: an unknown suspect using her account to pay for a subscription to an Internet pornography site.

It appears someone illegally accessed her bank account information and used it to subscribe to the site, police said. The 24-year-old woman, who lives in the 800 block of Louisiana Street, told police she first noticed the charges appearing on her bank statements in May.

Since then, she’s been billed $49.95 twice per month for the porn, said Sgt. Dan Ward, a police spokesman. Police are investigating.

Crime

Church target for theft

A church targeted by burglars last year is having more problems.

In 2003, someone broke into Lawrence Church of God, 724 N. Fourth St., and stole more than $1,000 in equipment including a sound system, a copier and a cell phone, church officials said.

Earlier this month, someone tried to victimize the church again by trying to pry open its outdoor storage shed, according to a police report. The damage was reported Aug. 18, but a police report from the incident wasn’t made available to the public until Monday.

University Democrats have kickoff tonight

Democratic officeholders and candidates will gather tonight at Liberty Hall, 642 Mass., for the fall kickoff party for the Kansas University Democrats.

The event, from 8 p.m. to midnight, will feature food and music from Dan Schmidt and Big Metal Rooster.

Those scheduled to appear and speak include Gov. Kathleen Sebelius; U.S. Rep. Dennis Moore, D-Kan.; Nancy Boyda, candidate for the 2nd District U.S. House of Representatives; and state Reps. Barbara Ballard and Paul Davis.

Admission is $5 for students and $10 for others.

Candidate to speak to College Republicans

Rich Lorenzo, Republican candidate for 10th District Kansas House of Representatives, will speak tonight at a meeting of the Kansas University College Republicans.

Lorenzo will speak at 7:30 p.m. in the Parlors Room of the Kansas Union. The meeting is open to the public.

Lorenzo, an investment adviser, is challenging incumbent Democrat Tom Holland, of Baldwin. The district includes Baldwin, the southern part of Lawrence and much of northeast Franklin County.